One should always expect an artist like PINKNOISE, who capitalizes their name, song titles, and album titles, to be loud. PINKNOISE, aka Kacey Foxx, first went viral for a cover of Linkin Park’s “Given Up”; a roaring moment ripe for virality that demonstrated their screaming powers. Foxx hails from the Arizona hardcore scene where they started their solo project PINKNOISE. Their debut EP, HUMAN = KIND, released via Nettwerk Music Group, is a revenge anthem track list that subtly chooses kindness over bitterness.
Before going solo with PINKNOISE, Foxx spent years in a band ruined by a couple nogoodniks who relied on them for everything. Burdened and emotionally abused by this long-term group, Foxx decided to quit. Shortly after, their success came with a karmic twist. The opening words of the EP delivered in “NEVER LAST” crunches on the words, “Nobody handed me anything,” in the true style of hardcore. Even though they shine brightest during these furious screams, PINKNOISE has the ability to reign it in.
A mix of hardcore, post-punk, and emo arise in PINKNOISE’s early repertoire. Foxx projects a unique embodiment of hardcore. Their vocals step off a cliff only to climb back up like an RnB/Soul singer mid chorus. “WHY ARE WE CALLING IT LOVE” sings with a teasing melody directly to their former band: “I could move heaven and earth / But I know nothing would change.” If PINKNOISE were to garner radio play, their vocal runs and pop inflections would make them viable for the pop, dance, and college radio stations. It would be hard to pass up any song on HUMAN=KIND song for another.
The last two songs on the EP compliment each other like pink on a rose. “LANDMINE” begins like a drive in a school zone at 3 o’clock—slowly and looking out for crossing children. Instead of choosing bitterness in lieu of their former band’s destruction, PINKNOISE is reflective and calm: “Hate is like a landmine / Standing on the wrong side / Figure it out.” Only once the school zone ends do they speed up on lonely highway and growl: “Fuck you.” This chant propels them headfirst into “BITTERSWEET,” the EP’s anthemic single.
As a whole, the EP flows like a succinct short story navigating a whirlwind of emotions. Thematically each song resides on the same theme—I’m done with you—but the tonal fluctuations keep the story moving. Each song is more dynamic than the last.
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